Native Plants

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Cressler, Alan

Cirsium muticum

Cirsium muticum Michx.

Swamp Thistle

Asteraceae (Aster Family)

Synonym(s): Carduus muticus, Cirsium bigelovii, Cirsium muticum var. monticola, Cirsium muticum var. subpinnatifidum

USDA Symbol: CIMU

USDA Native Status: L48 (N), CAN (N), SPM (N)

From the Image Gallery

5 photo(s) available in the Image Gallery

Plant Characteristics

Duration: Biennial
Habit: Herb
Size Notes: Up to about 8 feet tall, often much shorter.
Fruit: Fruit is a cypsela (pl. cypselae). Though technically incorrect, the fruit is often referred to as an achene.

Bloom Information

Bloom Color: White , Purple
Bloom Time: Jul , Aug , Sep

Distribution

USA: AL , AR , CT , DE , FL , GA , IA , IL , IN , KY , LA , MA , MD , ME , MI , MN , MO , NC , ND , NH , NJ , NY , OH , OK , PA , RI , SC , TN , TX , VA , VT , WI , WV
Canada: MB , NB , NL , NS , ON , PE , QC , SK

Growing Conditions

Light Requirement: Sun
Soil Moisture: Moist

Value to Beneficial Insects

Special Value to Native Bees
Special Value to Bumble Bees
Provides Nesting Materials/Structure for Native Bees

This information was provided by the Pollinator Program at The Xerces Society for Invertebrate Conservation.

Butterflies and Moths of North America (BAMONA)

Swamp Metalmark
(Calephelis muticum)

Larval Host

Learn more at BAMONA

National Wetland Indicator Status

Region:	AGCP	AK	AW	CB	EMP	GP	HI	MW	NCNE	WMVE
Status:	OBL				OBL	FACW		OBL	OBL

This information is derived from the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers National Wetland Plant List, Version 3.1 (Lichvar, R.W. 2013. The National Wetland Plant List: 2013 wetland ratings. Phytoneuron 2013-49: 1-241). Click here for map of regions.

From the National Organizations Directory

According to the species list provided by Affiliate Organizations, this plant is on display at the following locations:

Crosby Arboretum - Picayune, MS

Bibliography

Bibref 1186 - Field Guide to Moths of Eastern North America (2005) Covell, C.V., Jr.
Bibref 1185 - Field Guide to Western Butterflies (Peterson Field Guides) (1999) Opler, P.A. and A.B. Wright
Bibref 1294 - The Midwestern Native Garden: Native Alternatives to Nonnative Flowers and Plants An Illustrated Guide (2011) Adelman, Charlotte and Schwartz, Bernard L.

Search More Titles in Bibliography

Web Reference

Webref 38 - Flora of North America (2019) Missouri Botanical Garden, St. Louis, MO & Harvard University Herbaria, Cambridge, MA.

Additional resources

USDA: Find Cirsium muticum in USDA Plants
FNA: Find Cirsium muticum in the Flora of North America (if available)
Google: Search Google for Cirsium muticum

Metadata

Record Modified: 2022-12-23
Research By: TWC Staff

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